
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, April 21, 1990                   TAG: 9004230190
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

STIGMA PERSISTS

THE AMERICAN Medical Association long has recognized alcoholism as a disease. Nevertheless, the perception persists that people who drink excessively do so out of moral weakness. New scientific research announced this week ought to help reinforce the AMA's conclusion that alcoholism is, in fact, an illness.

The discovery by scientists from the University of Texas and the University of California at Los Angeles is a gene that may make people prone to alcoholism. The finding was made in studies of the brains of 70 people - 35 who died from alcoholism and 35 who were not alcoholics. The gene was present in 77 percent of the alcoholics, but in only 28 percent of the non-alcoholics.

Scientists long have known that alcoholism runs in families, and as many as 28 million Americans are believed to be at risk of developing the disease. The discovery of the gene - a receptor for the pleasure-seeking chemical dopamine - is expected to broaden the horizons for treatment. For instance, the scientists said their finding may one day lead to development of a blood test to identify people most at risk of becoming alcoholics.

One leading researcher urged that the finding, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, be regarded with caution. Dr. Henry Begleiter, of the State University of New York Health Science Center, said research of this nature typically is done on living members of the same family. The study's research was based entirely on tests conducted on cadavers.

Begleiter speaks from the perspective of his own interest. He is studying 800 families in research on the role of heredity in alcoholism.

Alcoholism has defied human understanding for centuries: The Roman philosopher Seneca classified it as a form of insanity. Alcoholism can be arrested with abstinence, but not cured. In announcing the gene discovery, scientists made no claim to be close to a cure.

One characteristic common among alcoholics is refusal to admit they have a drinking problem. Their families, friends and co-workers often also are reluctant to admit there is a problem. There still is a social stigma attached to being an alcoholic. If nothing else, perhaps the scientists' findings will make it a little more socially acceptable for people to admit they can't control their drinking. That could enable thousands to get help for a problem they can't lick alone.

by CNB